b"How long had you been working for the City before you joined the union?I would say, about 4 to 5 years. I started in 1973 as an elevator mechanic helperWas there someone on the job, either a coworker or a supervisor, who encouraged you in your job, a mentor? Yeah, I was lucky. I had some great mechanics that were able to grab me by the hand and teach me a lot of things.The mechanic would tell me to go out in the field, check the devices and report back to him. If I could fix something easily, Id fix it. If not, Id go back and get the mechanic. Hes running around all over the place. They were excellent mechanics and I learned a lot. They were the best. I was very fortunate.Any particular person that you remember?There was a fellow named Louis Andruzzi and Joe Ippolito and my dad of course, but they didn't want you to workwith relatives at that time. Today, it's a little different. I don't think they could even hire relatives today. Is this a family trade?Well, me, my father and my brother too, but he left the trade. Was your job location the same throughout your career with the City of New York?No, I moved a lot. And, the work changed because my title changed. After Manhattan, I was assigned to the BrooklynSupreme Court and I was still a helper at the time. I was a helper until 1980. In 1980 I took the civil service elevator mechanic's test. I was hired as a mechanic. They needed mechanics somewhere, so I move around again. I was in Brooklyn for a while, but then I ended up being transferred back to Manhattan working in downtown Manhattan, 125 Worth Street, which is the Department of Health building. I was the mechanic there for many years. In 1988, I tookthe supervisor's test, and I was made a supervisor in 1988. I was transferred to 1 Centre Street, which is the main build-ing, where all the administrators and commissioners are. I worked as a supervisor out of that location and I was assignedto the Bronx. I supervised the elevator mechanics and helpers, but my main home was 1 Centre. I would report to 1 Centre, go up to the Bronx, report to the Bronx in the morning, went back and forth between 1 Centre Street in Manhattan and the Bronx buildings at 161st Street, Grand Concourse.We also had the Bergen Building on Arthur Avenue, on 1932 Arthur Avenue. There were a whole cluster of buildings, basically near the Yankee Stadium. Did you have to take civil services tests for each promotion?That's correct. You had to qualify to take the test. You just couldn't take the test, you had to have previous experiencein the trade to qualify to take the test. It depended on the year. Sometimes they asked for two years, sometimes theyasked for three years experience; sometimes they asked for partial experience and trade experience. If you went to tradeschool or any kind of engineering school, that would qualify as some credits also.You have family members who worked for the City, your father and you said your brother for a little bit.My father worked for the City, but my brother worked on the outside for a while, but he didn't continue. 104 "